Wenger: Gunners must stay grounded

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has urged his team to keep their feet on the ground, as they head into Christmas with their status among the Premier League's elite top four re-established.

Saturday's away win at Wigan continued the Arsenal recovery after their shock Capital One Cup exit at the hands of League Two side Bradford earlier this month, but Wenger is determined to keep some sensible perspective on his side's progress.

"Suddenly, there are a lot of good things to talk about, but let's not go overboard," said a surprisingly downbeat Wenger.
"As much as we needed not to be depressed after what happened before, we have to keep our feet on the ground and focus on the next game.

"I always said the group is very good mentally and that will come out in the end and hopefully we can show that now. Our game is based on movement and technical quality and fluency and that demands confidence so it is very important we have confidence to play.

"We have rebuilt the team and how far we go, it is now that it will be decided. We have had some encouraging games and we have stuttered a bit. I hope now we can make more progress.

"We had some encouraging games and some stuttering ones. Now the team is more settled and the consistency will come out."

Self-confessed football addict Wenger has also confirmed he will spend a chunk of his Christmas Day watching tapes of football matches, even though his side's Boxing Day game against West Ham has been postponed.